Fruit-sorting machine.



Pamnted Apr. so, |901.

E. N. MAULL.

FRUIT SDRTING MACHINE.

(Application led Juy 9, 1900.)

2 Sheets-Sheet l.

(No Model.)

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No. 673,|27. Patented Apr. 30, |90l.

E. N. MAULL.

FRUIT SOBTING MACHINE.

(Application med .my 9, 1900. (N0 Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Wigzsscs Iggegor,

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UNrTeD STATES PATENT OFFICE.

EDWARD N. MAULL, OF CRESCENT CITY7 FLORIDA, ASSIGNOR OF ONE- HALF TO JOHN W. MILLER, OF SAME PLACE.

FauiT-,soRTlNe MACHINE.l

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 673,127, dated April 30, 1901.

Application filed July 9. IQQQ. Serial No. 23,022. (No model.)

To al?, wil/m, it Uta/y concern:

Be it known that I, EDWARD N. MAULL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Crescent City, in the county of Putnam and State of Florida, have invented a new and useful Fruit-Sorting Machine, of which the following is a specification.

My invention is an improved fruit-sorting machine, its object being to provide a fruitsorter which is adapted to sort fruit according to size and to deliver the same without injury into spouts or receptacles for the different sizes of fruit.

My invention consists in the peculiar construction and combination of devices hereinafter fully set forth, and particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a top plan view of a fruit-sorter embodying my improvements. Fig. 2 is a detail top plan view of the volute gage and its radially-adjustable sorting-arms. Fig. 3 is a vertical central sectional view of my ,improved fruitsorter, taken in line with the crank-shaft thereof. Fig 4 is a detail top plan View of the spider. Fig. 5 is adetail transverse sectional view through one side of the volute gage.

'lhe supporting-base l, which is adapted to be secured on a floor, is provided with a vertical central opening 2, in which is the lower end of a supporting-standard 3,which is adapted to be adjusted vertically in the base and is secured at any desired adjustment by a setscrew` 4E. Near the upper end of the standard is secured a spider 5 by means of a set screw 6, which passes through oneI side of its hub and engages with the standard. Said spider is provided with a series of radial arms 7 of suitable length, and at the outer end of each of the said arms is formed a lug or ear 8, in which is a horizontal opening. The outer ends of one pair of said radial arms are connected together by a web 9, from which extends a radial arm 9a, provided on its upper side, at its outer and inner ends, with a pair of vertical standards 10, which form the bearings for the crank-shaft l1. As will be noted from the foregoing and by reference to the drawings, this spider may be very cheaply constructed of iron cast in a single piece. l

A series of radially-adjustable supportingarms l2 are secured in the openings in the lugs 8 of the spider-arms by means of pairs of nuts 13, which are screwed on the threaded inner portions 14 of said supporting-arms 12, the said nuts bearing against opposite sides of said lugs of said spider-arms. The outer ends of the said supporting-arms l2 are upturned vertically at l5, and secured to the said upturned ends of said series of supporting-arms is the curved gage 16, which preferably of volute form, but which may be circular in form. Said gage is of iron, steel, or other suitable material and has its inner side concave in form, as at 17.

18 represents a flexible guide, which is preferably made of rubber hose provided with an interior core 19, made of spirally-wound wire. Said guide may, however, be an air-inflated tube or otherwise suitably constructed. The said liexible guide bears against the said gage, in the concave side thereof, and is of the same form as the said gage, and the latter is provided with a series of adjusting thumb-nuts 20, which operate in threaded openings in the gage and have their inner ends bearing against the outer sides of the said ilexible guide. By means ofihis construction the said guide may be adj usted at any point within the gage, and by means of the adjustable sortingarms 12 the gage may be adjusted to any desired curved form from the spider.

In the upper end of the vertical standard 3 is screwed the lower end of a vertical axle or spindle 2l, having the ball-bearings 22, in which is mounted a revoluble wheel 23,which, as here shown and preferably, is an ordinary bicycle-wheel provided with au air-iniated or pneumatic tire 24. As will be observed by reference to Fig. 1, this wheel is mounted ec centrically within the curved gage and the runway formed between the tire of the wheel, and the opposing guide 18 widens progressively in the direction of the arrow in Fig. 1 from the inner end 25 to the outer end 26 of said runway.

On the crank-shaft 11 is keyed africtional wheel 27, which bears against the under side IOO of the tire of the Wheel and is adapted to connnuLnicateA rotary motion to said Wheel when said shaft 1I is turned by its crank 28. The runway is divided into a series of ports 29 of progressively-greater width by the supporting-arms 12, and said supporting-arms are connected together in pairs by a series of cloth or other suitable spouts or receptacles 30, as shown, adapted to receive the fruit, which is assorted in its passage through the runway, the smallest size fruit passing into the first of said receptacles or spouts, the

next size fruit into the next of said recepta.-

cles or'spouts, and so on throughout the series.

In the operation of my improved fruitsorter the fruit is fed by any suitable device or by hand, as the case may be, to the inner end of the runway, and the rotation of the inner wheel causes the fruit to be carried in said runway until it reaches a point where the width of the runway is greaterv than its own diameter, whereupon it falls into one of the spouts or receptacles. y

By having the guide 1S iiexible and providing it with means, as hereinbefore described, whereby it may be adjusted in the volute gage the shape of the outer side ot' the gage may be slightly modified to meet the requirements of varying conditions and adapt the machine to be used for asserting various kinds of fruit. The pneumatic tire 24 being iiexible and yielding the same will yield slightly, as may be required to permit the escape of the fruit when of other than spherical form or when irregular in shape from the runway without injury to such fruit. Furthermore, the said pneumatic tire 24 serves not only as an elastic surface for the inner moving side of the runway, but also constitutes a yielding frictional surface for contact with the friction-wheel 27 on the crank-shaft.

A fruit-sorter thus constructed is exceedingly cheap and simple, is adapt-ed tobe op; erated by a Very slight expenditure of power, is thoroughly efficient', is not likely to get out of order, and can be adjusted and adapted to sort various kinds of fruit.

Having thus described my invention, I claim- I. In a fruit-sorter, the combination of a relativelyfixed curved guide, a revoluble wheel arranged within said guide and eccentrically with relation thereto,'said lWheel and guide forming a runway between them, a bearing for said wheel, and means to rotate said wheel, and means to support andadjust said curved guide, substantially as described.

2. A fruit-sorter having a curved gage and the revoluble wheel arranged eccentrically `with relation thereto, said Wheel and gage forming a guide-runway between them, one ot the sides of said guide-runway having an air-iniiated yielding contacting surface, substantially as described.

3. Ina fruit-sorter, the combination with the curved outer gage forming one side of the runway, of the wheel mounted 'eccentrically within said gage and having the air-inflated or elastic tire, said tire forming the inner side ofthe run-Way, andV thefriction-wheel bearing against said tire and means to' rotate said friction-wheel, substantially as described.

4. In a fruit-sorter, the combination with theinner revoluble wheel, of the' volute-gage frame Without said wheel and having the adjustable guide on its inner side, for the purpose set forth, substantially as described.

5'. In a fruit-sorter, the combination with the inner revoluble Wheel, of the' volute-gage frame Without said wheel and having the ad-v justable guide on its inner side, said guide comprising the elastic tube, substantially as described.

6. The combination, in afruit-sorter, of the standard, the spider, the adjusting-arms on said spider, the volute gage supported by the said arms, the inner wheel on said standard, and devices t0 rotate said wheel, substantially as described.

7. Ina fruit-sorter, the' combination of the inner revoluble wheel having the elastic tire, the curved elastic guide without and eccentric to said wheel, said wheel and guide forming a runway between them, and said guide having the series of su pporting-arms, and the series of'flexible spouts or receptacles supported by said supporting-arms under said runway, substantially as described.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have heretoafxed my signature in the presence of two witnesses. y

EDWARD N. MAULL.

Witnesses:

B'. F. WATTS, P. C. SMITH.

IOO 

